The government set prices for animal skins sacrificed during Eid-ul-Azha, with different rates for Dhaka and areas outside the capital.
However, a Jago News survey found that 88.98 per cent of sellers could not sell their sacrificial animal skins at the government-fixed prices, while only 7.87 per cent succeeded.
On May 26, the Ministry of Commerce announced the prices: salted cowhide in Dhaka was set at Tk 60-65 per square foot (up from Tk 55-60 last year), and outside Dhaka at Tk 55-60 (previously Tk 50-55).
The minimum price for raw cowhide was fixed at Tk 1,350 in Dhaka and Tk 1,150 outside Dhaka. Salted goat skins were priced at Tk 22-27 per square foot, and raw goat skins at Tk 20-22.
Jago News reporters visited rawhide markets in and outside Dhaka on Eid day and the following day. They observed cowhides in Dhaka being sold for Tk 200-900, depending on size.
Goat skins, however, had little to no demand, with many abandoned on streets due to lack of buyers.
Commerce Adviser Sheikh Bashir Uddin claimed that rawhides were being sold at the government-fixed prices, with a special Ministry of Commerce team enforcing compliance.
He noted that this year’s prices were higher than in previous years.
In Dhaka, most skins are processed at the Posta in Lalbagh. On June 7, skins from the capital and nearby areas began arriving after Eid.
Traders, including seasonal vendors, farmers, and madrasa students, transported skins using trucks and vans. Cowhides were sold for Tk 200-900: smaller ones for Tk 200-400, and medium to large ones for Tk 700-900.
Shopkeepers claimed that after labor and other costs, their expenses aligned with the government’s minimum price of around Tk 1,300 taka per skin.
Md Jiblu, owner of Arafat Leather, told Jago News, “We’re buying cowhides at a maximum of Tk 800. Including transport and salting costs, which are under Tk 400 taka, our total cost matches the government’s fixed price of Tk 1,200-1,300.”
Mohammad Kamal Uddin, manager at Haji Trading Corporation, said, “Prices vary by skin size. Most skins are going to Savar Industrial City this year.”
In Aminbazar, a major skin trading hub, large cowhides sold for Tk 850-900, but goat and sheep skins had no demand.
Some traders dumped unsold goat skins on roads and sidewalks. Maksud Alam, a goat skin seller in Aminbazar, said, “No one is buying goat skins. I don’t know what to do after bringing them from so far.”
Md Shahadat Ullah, Senior Vice Chairman of the Bangladesh Tanners Association, explained that since tanneries moved from Hazaribagh to Savar in 2017, many could not process goat skins due to limited capacity. “Goat skins are small, often damaged during stretching, and have high processing costs, making them less viable,” he said. Many tanneries have faced losses or shut down, further reducing demand for goat skins.
On June 8, Commerce Adviser Sheikh Bashir Uddin visited the Posta wholesale market and reiterated that skins were being sold at government-fixed prices, particularly for salted hides.
He clarified that skins sold for Tk 700-800 were unsalted, which he considered a good price compared to previous years. Addressing complaints from seasonal traders, he noted that some sell poorly preserved, half-rotten skins, which fetch lower prices (Tk 700-800), while well-preserved skins sell for Tk 1,200-1,300.
BashirIUddin highlighted government efforts to improve leather management, including local storage and salting initiatives to balance market supply and demand.
A national control room monitors leather sales, and district and upazila administrations are involved in enforcement. He dismissed claims of widespread price discrepancies as misinformation spread by some media and social platforms.
To boost demand, the government lifted the export ban on raw and wet blue leather, provided Tk 220 crore in incentives, and distributed salt to mosques, upazilas, and villages nationwide. Bashir Uddin urged stakeholders to cooperate in proper salting and storage to ensure fair prices and warned against spreading misinformation that could harm the leather market.